Man gets 28 years in violent home invasion in Severna Park

Anne Arundel County (Map, News) - An Ocean City man was sentenced to 28 years in prison Monday for a violent home invasion in Severna Park where he pistol-whipped a woman while screaming for money.

Moments before his sentencing, Ambrose Rawls Jr., 29, asked to fire his attorney and withdraw his Alford plea to first-degree assault, second-degree burglary and use of a handgun.

“I was scared of getting life [in prison,] so I took the plea,” he said, referring to the plea in which Rawls would maintain his innocence while acknowledging the state has enough evidence to convict him.

“I was talked into taking a plea that I really didn’t want to take.”

But Arundel Circuit Judge Paul Goetzke said Rawls’ request was a “delay tactic” and he had entered the plea agreement voluntarily in April and never entered previous complaints about his attorney Mark Wemple.

Rawls originally was charged with attempted first-degree murder, along with his co-defendant Paul Walsh, 40, of Severna Park, after the two gunmen busted through the front door of the Glenns Road house on June 30, 2007, and sent four residents running to hide.

Walsh ransacked the bedroom where he allegedly shot Kevin Green, 44, three times before Green jumped through a window, according to court records.

Meanwhile, Rawls found Michelle Beswick hiding behind a door and struck her repeatedly in the head with a handgun while threatening to kill her if she didn’t turn over the money, said prosecutor Jennifer Alexander.

“He took a defenseless, unarmed woman down to the basement and beat her,” Alexander said.

Rawls and Walsh then led Anne Arundel police on a high-speed chase through the county before two police cars boxed in Walsh’s vehicle and forced him to crash, Alexander said.

Rawls, who was sitting in the passenger seat, had the woman’s blood on his T-shirt, she said.

“I can admit that I’ve done some wrong things in my past, but I’m ... trying to get my life together,” Rawls told the judge.

Goetzke commended Rawls for working toward his GED while incarcerated but said, “I cannot turn my back on what you’ve done here.”

Goetzke also considered Rawls’ five previous convictions including drug possession, and handgun violations in Baltimore City and Baltimore County.

Rawls’ co-defendant, Walsh, is scheduled for trial in September for the home invasion charges.

The victims did not testify Monday, but Green will appear in court next month for his own trial.

About two months after the home invasion, police returned to Green’s house when a neighbor told police he heard men yelling “Kill him!” and “Break his leg!” behind the property and saw pit bulls fighting.

Police raided the house two days later and seized several pit bulls with fighting injuries.

Police also said Green was in the bathroom dumping bags of crack cocaine and $600 into the toilet.

cpeirce@baltimoreexaminer.com

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